Delivering a Baby in Kenya

In the months leading up to my delivery, I heard the following phrase countless times from my friends back home in the States: 

"So, you're going to delivery back here, in the States, right?"

I couldn't help but smile to myself when hearing them make that comment because I am sure that when many back home envision Africa,  a largely undeveloped continent defined by wilderness, disease, poverty and war come to mind. In other words, "why on Earth would you willingly risk having a baby in Africa if you had the means to deliver back home, in the developed West?" Again, I smile to myself. 

As my mom can attest, my obstetric care leading up to, during, and after my delivery was on par with, or better than, any care that I would have gotten in the States. Take, for example, the 4D scans that were taken at MP Shah Hospital. We were able to get print-outs of our baby that offered a detailed image of her face and limbs - far better than the fuzzy images I got during a trip back to my US hometown. Of course, critical car is always going to be better back home, but because my pregnancy was progressing completely normally, I had no reason to eat into my maternity leave (and risk having a miscarriage by flying late in my pregnancy) by flying home for US medical care. I felt extremely well-prepared for delivery, thanks to Lamaze classes (offered for 9k per couple per course at Medanta Africare on Waiyaki Way) and an exceptional obstetrician - Dr. Mariah Carvalho of Aga Khan Hospital - both of these are MUSTS, by the way, because delivering a baby is H-A-R-D!! 

Anyway, the point I'm trying to get across is, having a baby in Kenya is completely safe. Sure, the maternal death rate in Kenya does remain high, but that is because quality medical care is still not affordable in Kenya (Kenyatta's free maternity program doesn't count because the key factor of QUALITY health care isn't incorporated). If you have the insurance to cover the many costs pregnancy, deliver and pediatric care inevitably incur however, you will be pleasantly surprised with the medical services available in this part of the world.